Described herein is a hair care composition that enables new product opportunities and consumer benefits by addressing the current disadvantages associated with hair care compositions. It has been found that stable concentrated and low viscosity hair care compositions can be delivered to the hair in various forms including a foamed form. Delivery of cleansing composition in the form of foam represents an attractive consumer concept. The low density of the foam necessitates a high surfactant composition in order for the consumer to receive the appropriate level of cleansing in a realistic product volume in one dose. However, typically, high surfactant liquid cleansing composition exhibit high viscosity, which makes it difficult to deliver via a pump foam dispenser, a squeeze foam dispenser or an aerosol foam dispenser. Therefore, delivery as a foam is facilitated by low viscosity compositions that contain a high concentration of cleansing surfactants.
Hair care compositions comprising (a) above about 20% total surfactants, wherein the surfactants comprises of (i) anionic surfactants (ii) amphoteric and/or zwitterionic surfactants, (iii) optionally nonionic surfactants; and (b) viscosity reducing agents provide stable compositions having viscosity below about 3000 centipoise. Viscosity reducing agents can include: Class A materials, Class B materials, water miscible glycols and mixtures thereof. The surfactants comprise an average weight % of alkyl branching of above about 0.5.
In order to deliver consumer acceptable wet conditioning feel, the hair care composition also comprises a cationic polymer. The hair care composition is able to deliver low viscosity concentrated liquid cleansing compositions even in the presence of cationic polymers which typically raise liquid viscosity. Cationic polymers suitable for use include those having a weight average molecular weight less than about 1,000,000 g/mol.
Additionally, the hair care composition may further comprise one of more benefit agent including, but not limited to, silicone materials to enhance the consumer desirable wet and dry conditioning feel. Suitable silicone materials include those silicone emulsions having a particle size of less than about 10 micrometers. Silicones less suitable for use include non-emulsified silicones and/or large particle silicone emulsions which may result in a phase unstable composition.